Imaging systems conventionally contain an array (typically rectangular) of light-sensing pixels located at the focal plane of an optical subsystem 11, as shown in FIG. 1. This array is referred to as a focal plane array (FPA). An increase in the desired field of view (FOV) requires a corresponding increase in the size of the FPA, as shown generally in FIG. 1. The FPA is conventionally provided as an integrated circuit having centrally located pixel array circuitry and peripherally located signal processing circuitry, possibly also mated to a detector layer—the construction and material of which is dependent upon the desired wavelength sensitivity. The size of the FPA may be increased by increasing the size of the integrated circuit die area to accommodate a larger area of pixel array circuitry. However, increasing the die size will ultimately be problematic from a manufacturability standpoint, because the acceptable die yield decreases with increasing die size.
It is desirable in view of the foregoing to provide for larger FPAs while avoiding the aforementioned manufacturability limitations.